The present invention is directed to the use of home entertainment devices to provide telephony services, in particular, but not by way of limitation, to the integration of a home entertainment device with a software client in order to provide real time two-way communication services.
The availability of broadband communication networks has proliferated greatly in recent years. Consumers may currently ‘choose from a variety of broadband providers including cable companies, telephone companies, satellite broadband providers, and DSL providers. Due to the increasing availability of broadband communication infrastructures, it has become possible to provide a greater number of entertainment and communication services to consumers. For example, Internet telephony and video conferencing applications currently enjoy great popularity. In addition, there has been an increasing desire towards the integration of entertainment and telephony services in the home. Thus, there exists a need to provide the integration of broadcast communication with real time two-way communications by enabling home entertainment devices with the capability of providing real time communications services.